Regardless of how they dissuaded him, Julian was firm that he had no ability to stop his parents, leaving the Crawfords quite helpless.They thought that if Julian’s parents did come, they would treat them cordially.Ring, ring, ring.Zoey’s phone rang.She answered the call without checking who it was from.“Oh, it’s Felicia.”Hearing Zoey greeting the caller, Quinn and her brother immediately pricked their ears to listen to their mother’s conversation with Felicia.“You want to introduce a boyfriend to Quinn? What does he do for a living? You know about Quinn’s situation right? You won’t introduce someone afraid Quinn might be abusive like those previous ones, will you?“Felicia, let me clarify right away. If the prospective partner is worried that Quinn might be abusive, there’s no need for you to play the matchmaker. Quinn won’t marry anyone with such concerns. I’d rather raise her for life than let her marry someone with tendencies for domestic violence.”Felicia chuckled
Quinn calmly ate her food. When Zoey was not looking, she seized the window of opportunity and refilled her glass with wine before downing it. By the time her mother looked over, she had already put down the glass and was back to calmly eating her meal. There was no sign of her sneaky behavior.Julian found this amusing.However, he did not dare to fill Quinn’s glass with wine. His future mother-in-law had strict rules about not allowing the family to drink too much, and even though he was just having a couple of drinks together as their guest, he could not overindulge. He certainly did not want to break the good impression Zoey had of him.“Yes, it’s her colleague’s son. She wants our daughter to meet him tomorrow at the nicely decorated bubble tea shop near our gym.”Zoey handed the phone to Dave and asked quietly, “What do you think? Should we arrange for our daughter to meet him? He seems a bit overweight, and it’s clear that he seldom works out.Dave took the phone, and Will
Quinn had always treated Julian like a buddy and the Crawfords had eliminated him from the list of potential son-in-law candidates. Zoey took her phone back and said, “Let’s wait for any updates tomorrow. You can go over if Felicia doesn’t cancel the date. The boba shop isn’t too far from our gym anyway.“Bring a dress and a pair of heels with you when you go to work tomorrow. You should change into them to look more ladylike if the date isn’t canceled. Stop dressing up like a bodyguard every day. Anyone would be afraid that you’d swing a punch at them.”“Look at the weather, Mom. It’s impossible to wear a dress. Do you want me to catch a cold?”Quinn glanced at Julian’s glass. She wanted to steal a few sips. “Who said anything about a summer dress? You can wear one that’s suitable for winter.”“I don’t have dresses in my closet, Mom. I’ve never worn a dress since I became an adult.”Quinn did not like wearing dresses. It would get in the way during her practice. “I can’t wa
Will believed that the men the matchmaker introduced to Quinn were unattractive. Dave did not object to the match, while Zoey reminded her son to be considerate of Julian and not hurt their guest. Everyone in the Crawford family was trained except Zoey. Due to their competitive nature, they liked to have matches with people skilled in martial arts. Julian contemplated whether to go all out or hold back later. However, upon remembering that Quinn admired strength, he decided to put his all into the match and defeat Will. That way, he could gain Quinn’s admiration. He hoped that his future brother-in-law would not hold a grudge against him for it. After the meal, Julian wanted to help clear the dishes but was stopped by Zoey. She said, “You can go and talk to Dave. Quinn and I will clean up.”Julian smiled and said, “It’s okay, Mrs. Crawford. I’m the one who cleans up after every meal in my family. I’m used to it.”He needed to exhibit his good side to the Crawfords. As he
Ten minutes later, Julian and Quinn walked behind her brothers. They were heading to Power Fitness. Summervale was livelier when dark fell. Although it was not as bustling as Wiltspoon, the city lights illuminated the streets. Mark said, “You can go up against me first, Julian. My dad trained us three, so we have similar moves. If you can beat me, you’ll have a greater chance of challenging my brother. He started training several years before I did. He’s stronger and faster.“He has also been teaching more advanced students while I’m still overseeing kids. It’s because I’m still young and not as famous as Will.”In Summervale, Quinn’s brothers were well-known in the martial arts circle. Julian said, “If so, it’s unfair to Will. It’s okay. I’ll have a match with him right away. I can accept any outcome. I train to strengthen my body and defend myself, not for fame.”Quinn grinned. “Why do you need fame when you’re a businessman? You’re already popular in Wiltspoon’s business in
“Besides, no one in their right mind will try to offend Old Mrs. York. She’s the one with the most connections. You’ll know that no one in my social circle is simple once you get acquainted with Serenity and the rest.”Families of higher status usually knew each other well with some even allies. “Will you still be my friend if you’ll be in danger because of me, Quinn? Will you break off our friendship?”Will turned his head and said, “What do you take Quinn for? My sister has already thought of you as her best friend. She’s sincere and will go to any lengths to help her friends. She’ll never break off your friendship.“However, that’s only if you don’t do anything illegal that’ll endanger Quinn. Otherwise, not only will we cut all ties with you, we’ll also beat you up.”Then, he told Quinn, “Julian was teasing you. Why did you believe him? If his situation is as dangerous as it sounds, he won’t contact us anymore if he has a sliver of conscience. Since he dared to come to our hou
“Don’t take me for a fool. I know what’s love,” Quinn complained. Will looked at Julian, then Quinn, who clearly had no idea about love. He chose not to expose the tension between them. Hang on. He had just revealed that Julian was preparing his sister for something. Yet, Quinn did not seem to get the hint that Julian was worried for her. “You must hold back during the match later, Will. Don’t go all out,” Quinn reminded him as her way to change the subject.Will said, “We’re not having a death match. Don’t worry. I’ll go easy on him.”Julian thanked Will. Soon, they arrived at Power Fitness. A few coaches were still around, watching their students train at night. When they saw Quinn and the rest walking in, they stopped. “Everyone take a rest and clear some space for me. I’m going up against Mr. Bucham here and have you all witness a match between professionals,” Will spoke with a smile, and everyone complied. A coach eyed Julian and asked, “Which gym is he from, Wil
“If Julian loses, that pool of money would be for all the bettors' supper. If he wins, all of your money will be mine.”Quinn did not want Julian to be embarrassed as everyone here would surely place their bets on Will. No one knew how skilled Julian was. However, based on his refined appearance and how Will addressed him as Mr. Bucham, some of them guessed that Julian was probably a CEO.For someone like that to be trained in martial arts, they would at most learn the foundation. How could he possibly defeat the future owner of the gym?The coaches took their cash and bet on Will’s victory. While the students were not little kids, they were still teenagers and did not have much money. However, they still joined in on the bet in small amounts.“I’ll follow Quinn and bet on Mr. Bucham.”One of the students gave Quinn his money after some thought. He said, “I’ll follow your lead, Quinn. We’ll be rich if Mr. Bucham wins.”Since everyone placed their bets on Will, the money he co
Belinda still viewed tradition seriously. No matter how big of a fuss Adrian and his brothers made, the gates of Fisher Manor remained closed. Adrian spotted Audrey and Patrick strolling in the garden, but they ignored the Clark brothers. The brothers finally knew the feeling of losing their mother. When she was alive, they were still young masters of the Fishers despite being Clarks. They could live in the manor with their parents and lead a lavish lifestyle. They could also enter and leave the manor as they wished. Adrian had always thought Fisher Manor was their home. How was it not theirs when they had been born and bred there?Although their mother had bought them villas as a wedding gift after they got married, the brothers still preferred living at Fisher Manor. Their villas were inferior compared to the manor. They thought they could live there for their entire lives. Even if Belinda were to pass away, Caroline would have become the matriarch and continue livin
Serenity hummed in agreement but did not reply. She soon fell asleep. Since he did not hear her reply, Zachary looked toward her and saw she was asleep. He chuckled. “That was fast.”He was jealous of her being able to fall asleep so quickly.Although Zachary was sleepy, many thoughts would run through his head when he was on the bed. It was difficult for him to sleep once he started thinking. It usually took an hour or longer for him to be able to fall asleep. Drinking alcohol helped. He could fall asleep within an hour if his head were free of thoughts. Zachary caressed Serenity’s face. He could not get enough of looking at her. “I love you, Seren. I love you forever.”He whispered those sweet words in her ear. A moment later, he touched her stomach. The baby must have rested as well. It did not respond to his touch. Soon, Zachary would become a happy man with a wife and a child.He closed his eyes in satisfaction and fell asleep with his wife. …Meanwhil
“I want to go to Satbury.”Serenity was interested in traveling to Isabella’s hometown. “It’s too bad that I’m pregnant now. Even if I can handle the trip there, you won’t let me go. We can head there after the baby is born. I’m curious how my future sister-in-law looks.“By the way, we haven’t gone on our honeymoon, Zachary. You said you’d make it up to me and take me on a trip for a month or two after the baby is born.”Serenity remembered that Zachary owed her a honeymoon. He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten about it. We can go on our honeymoon a month after you give birth, but should we bring the baby along? Can you bear leaving the baby to the nanny for a month?”He bet she was not willing to leave their baby behind. Even he did not want to.The baby would be their first child. Zachary wished he could be by their child’s side every day and watch the baby grow. They also agreed that he would look after the baby so Serenity would not have to worry about a thi
Upon hearing Serenity’s words, Zachary knew she was not very satisfied with the name he had come up with. He said, “You’re right. There’s still time. We can think of a few better names.”After a pause, he added, “I think my parents and Nana will think of a name for the baby too. After all, it’s their first grandchild and great-grandchild, respectively.”The first child would always receive the most love. Since there was only one child, everyone would shower their love on the baby. Serenity smiled. “I’ll leave the naming of the baby to you. You can be the one worrying about it. I’ll stay out of it because I’m bad at coming up with names.”“Okay. Leave it to me.”After speaking, Zachary pecked her cheek. He said gently, “I just want you to be happy and not tire yourself out.”“I won’t ever have the chance to be tired with you around.“Do you want to have some rest, babe? You should rest. I’ll head downstairs to have a look at Sonny and Laurence.”Zachary said, “I’m not sleepy.
“There’s no rush. There’s still a month till the due date. We can take our time to think of a name.“We should think of a few names for a baby girl too. What if a miracle happens?”Zachary said, “Chloe has gotten more adorable over time. Connor also looks cute when he isn’t crying. Their eyes are huge and bright. I feel my heart melting whenever I look at them.“I’m so jealous of Ben for getting a son and a daughter in one go. His babies are so cute. I can finally understand why Nana’s eyes gleam whenever she sees Chloe. She’s always fighting to hold her.”Serenity leaned her head against Zachary’s shoulder. “Let’s not think that we’re having a daughter. I joined a new mothers’ support group when I went for a checkup last time and learned of some ways to determine the baby’s gender. Although they aren’t the most accurate, we can still use them as a reference. I’m 99 percent sure that we’re having a baby boy.“You should just stick to thinking of a boy’s name. You can still come
Soon, the baby did a kick again. Zachary grinned. “Lil’ Bun understands us, Seren. The baby gave a little kick as a reply.”Serenity said, “The baby must think you’re playing with it because your hands keep touching the bump.”“I think the baby understands what we say. I read in books that babies can hear in the womb. Otherwise, why do people bother talking, playing music, or reading to their unborn babies?”“Do you miss Dad, Lil’ Bun? I’ll be by your and Mom’s side from now on. I’ll watch you grow and wait till you’re ready to meet me.“You must be a good kid. Don’t kick your mom too hard. She’ll be in pain. If you like kicking, you can kick me after you’re born. I have thicker skin and a higher tolerance for pain.”Serenity beamed as she watched Zachary interact with the baby in her womb. She was happy. Having Zachary and the baby made her feel like she owned the entire world. It was surprising that a man as tough as Zachary had such a soft side to him. He had changed for
Jane suggested. Antonia added, “You guys can even leave for Wiltspoon tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. You must be tired after your business trip, Mr. York. You should rest at our manor. Besides, it’s the weekend tomorrow. You can meet Ben.”Zachary smiled. “I thought about that as well, but I didn’t want to intrude.”Antonia said, “Not at all. We would love to host you. Sonny probably doesn’t want to go home yet.”She waved at Sonny, who then walked to her. She pulled him into her arms and lifted him, asking, “Do you want to play for another day or two?”“I’m fine with anything. I’ll go back when Aunt Seren does. I’ll follow her.”His mother was not back yet. Sonny did not mind either arrangement. Zachary told him, “I bet you’re having so much fun that you don’t want to go home, but your mom will return soon. Duncan has already gone to Jensburg to bring her home.”Sonny replied with a grunt. He knew about that. He was unhappy that Duncan did not bring him along to
Zachary laughed. The kids were fighting to do something so trivial. Conflicts arose often between the two boys. In the past, he, Josh, and Duncan also got into fights. However, they always reconciled quickly. No one ever took their quarrels to heart. After the bodyguards took all the gifts, Zachary led them to the courtyard. At that moment, Serenity stepped out of the house. She and Zachary stopped at the same time and stared at each other.A day apart felt like three years to them. Since they had been apart for some time, it felt as if a lot of time had passed. During those days, Serenity had been extremely worried about her husband and sister. Luckily, everything was over. “Seren.”Zachary smiled and walked toward his wife. Serenity snapped back to her senses and went to him in quick steps. The couple hugged each other tight. “You’re finally back, Zachary.”“I said I’d come to take you and Sonny home. Of course, I’d be back.”Zachary pulled away from Ser
“Honey, you have me, and my parents treat you like their own. They care for you more than they do for me and I’m their son.”Camryn shook off the pain in her heart and smiled lightly, “Yes, God has been kind to me by giving me such an excellent husband and open-minded in-laws, and sisters-in-law who I get along with like real sisters.”This had somewhat compensated for her lack of familial affection. She was especially grateful to Grandma May. If the old lady had not chosen her, Callum would not have even known who she was, let alone pursue her. The Camryn of today would not exist, and she could not imagine how many more years she would have spent living in darkness if she had not married Callum. Even if Aunt Evelyn had heard of the legendary doctor, she had no way to contact him.Right then, a customer entered the store. The couple aptly stopped their conversation there and moved on from the heavy topic.Meanwhile, in Annenburg, Serenity knew her husband would be flying here tod